Month: December 2017

By Darren LundcloseAuthor: Darren LundName: Darren LundEmail: dlund@fasken.comSite:http://www.fasken.com/en/darren-lund/About: Darren Lund is a member of the Trust, Wills, Estates and Charities at Fasken, Toronto office. Darren has expertise in a broad range of estate planning matters, including multiple wills, inter vivos trusts, disability planning, estate freezing, and planning for beneficiaries and assets outside Canada. Darren advises trustees and beneficiaries on all aspects of estate administration, both contentious and non-contentious, and his experience includes passing of fiduciary accounts, trust variations, post-mortem tax planning, and administering the Canadian estates of non-residents. He also speaks and writes on a variety of related topics such as estate planning for spouses and couples, inheriting overseas property and estate planning for persons with disabilities. He previously practised estates law at a large national law firm.
Email: dlund@fasken.comSee Authors Posts (34) •
December 29, 2017
• 0 Comments

The latest chapter in the ongoing saga of the federal government’s reforms to the taxation of private companies was released on December 13, 2017. On that date, the Minister of Finance released the draft legislation and explanatory notes for the revised version of the “income sprinkling” or “TOSI” (tax on…

By Dr. Richard ShulmancloseAuthor: Dr. Richard ShulmanName: Dr. Richard ShulmanEmail: Richard.Shulman@thp.caSite:http://www.trilliumhealthpartners.caAbout: Dr. Shulman is a Geriatric Psychiatrist, and is the Service Medical Director for Seniors Mental Health Services at Trillium Health Partners (Mississauga Hospital, Credit Valley Hospital and Queensway Health Centre). He is available for independent medical-legal capacity assessments. He is an assistant professor at the University of Toronto.
Email: Richard.Shulman@thp.caSee Authors Posts (23) •
December 27, 2017
• 0 Comments

Pursuant to Section 45 of the Substitute Decisions Act (SDA),[i] incapacity for personal care is defined as – A person is incapable of personal care if the person is not able to understand information that is relevant to making a decision concerning his or her own health care, nutrition, shelter,…

By Brittany SudcloseAuthor: Brittany SudName: Brittany SudEmail: bsud@fasken.comSite:About: Brittany Sud is a member of the Trust, Wills, Estates and Charities Group at Fasken, Toronto office.
Brittany is developing a broad estates and trusts practice with a focus on planning and administration matters. As part of her practice, Brittany assists high net worth clients, entrepreneurs and professionals with Wills, powers of attorney, domestic contracts and trusts. She has experience developing and implementing cohesive estate plans that reflect the financial objectives and short and long-term goals of clients, including advising on probate planning, family business succession planning, asset protection strategies and disability planning. Brittany’s estate administration practice includes preparing applications for probate and administering the Canadian estates of non-residents.
Outside of the office, Brittany enjoys playing softball and tennis, travelling and cooking. She is a dedicated volunteer of the United Jewish Appeal, Jewish National Fund, One Family Fund and Baycrest Foundation.
Community Involvement
• Host, Baycrest Foundation - Game Night for Baycrest, 2015
• Chair, Pitch for Israel Softball Tournament, 2014-2016
• Vice-Chair, United Jewish Appeal Young Lawyers Leadership Campaign Canvassing Team, 2016
Memberships and Affiliations
• Member, Canadian Bar Association
• Member, Ontario Bar Association - Trusts and Estates Law Section
• Member, Ontario Bar Association - Young Lawyers’ Division
• Student Member, Society of Trusts and Estates Practitioners (STEP) CanadaSee Authors Posts (28) •
December 22, 2017
• 0 Comments

My previous blog ended with the following sentence: “Where a power of attorney for property is effective upon execution, proper safeguards should be put in place to ensure the power of attorney is not inappropriately acted upon”. This blog will expand on the meaning of that sentence. Where a power…

By Justin de VriescloseAuthor: Justin de VriesName: Justin de VriesEmail: jdevries@devrieslitigation.comSite:http://www.devrieslitigation.comAbout: Justin has been consistently named as one of the Best Lawyers in Canada/Trusts & Estates. He is an accomplished litigator who has appeared before all levels of the Ontario Court & the Federal Court of Canada. Justin's areas of expertise include: estate, trust, and capacity litigation, as well as probate applications and estate administration. He regularly speaks on estate, trust and capacity issues.
Email: jdevries@devrieslitigation.comSee Authors Posts (35) •
December 19, 2017
• 0 Comments

It is that time of year again… “the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” as that well-loved refrain goes. Lawyers and other professionals can get awfully serious about what they do when it comes to estate planning, litigation, and administration. So in an attempt to offer some levity in this…

A common estate planning technique is to structure a family trust which owns the shares of a small business corporation in such a way that allows each beneficiary (most commonly being members of the taxpayer’s immediate family – spouse and/or children) to participate in the sale or disposition of the…

By Audrey MillercloseAuthor: Audrey MillerName: Audrey MillerEmail: amiller@eldercaring.caSite:http://www.eldercaring.caAbout: Email: amiller@eldercaring.ca
About: Audrey Miller, Managing Director of Elder Caring Inc. has over 25 years social work and rehabilitation experience working with older individuals and their families. She advises the financial, insurance, legal and business communities regarding elder care issues. Audrey is a recognized expert in her field.See Authors Posts (197) •
December 18, 2017
• 1 Comment

Where has the time gone? Have you noticed that the older one gets the faster time is? I can’t believe we are almost at the end of 2017. Upon reflection, it has been a whirlwind year. Thankfully my family and I experienced good health. However I know this has not…

In today’s world of international families it is not uncommon for a Canadian family to have one or more members that are non-residents of Canada. When that same family has set up a Canadian discretionary family trust that is intended to benefit its members with, say distributions from a family…

This blog is written by Sally Lee, LLB, and Estate and Trust Consultant with Scotia Wealth Management. Publication 559 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service states: The gift tax applies to lifetime transfers of property from one person (the donor) to another person (the donee). A gift is made if…

By Audrey MillercloseAuthor: Audrey MillerName: Audrey MillerEmail: amiller@eldercaring.caSite:http://www.eldercaring.caAbout: Email: amiller@eldercaring.ca
About: Audrey Miller, Managing Director of Elder Caring Inc. has over 25 years social work and rehabilitation experience working with older individuals and their families. She advises the financial, insurance, legal and business communities regarding elder care issues. Audrey is a recognized expert in her field.See Authors Posts (197) •
December 11, 2017
• 0 Comments

I am sharing my good fortune in that I am proud to be a ‘puppy raiser’ for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB).I am doing so in this blog because it relates directly to aging well and philanthropic opportunities. By way of background, CNIB is a national charitable…

By Brittany SudcloseAuthor: Brittany SudName: Brittany SudEmail: bsud@fasken.comSite:About: Brittany Sud is a member of the Trust, Wills, Estates and Charities Group at Fasken, Toronto office.
Brittany is developing a broad estates and trusts practice with a focus on planning and administration matters. As part of her practice, Brittany assists high net worth clients, entrepreneurs and professionals with Wills, powers of attorney, domestic contracts and trusts. She has experience developing and implementing cohesive estate plans that reflect the financial objectives and short and long-term goals of clients, including advising on probate planning, family business succession planning, asset protection strategies and disability planning. Brittany’s estate administration practice includes preparing applications for probate and administering the Canadian estates of non-residents.
Outside of the office, Brittany enjoys playing softball and tennis, travelling and cooking. She is a dedicated volunteer of the United Jewish Appeal, Jewish National Fund, One Family Fund and Baycrest Foundation.
Community Involvement
• Host, Baycrest Foundation - Game Night for Baycrest, 2015
• Chair, Pitch for Israel Softball Tournament, 2014-2016
• Vice-Chair, United Jewish Appeal Young Lawyers Leadership Campaign Canvassing Team, 2016
Memberships and Affiliations
• Member, Canadian Bar Association
• Member, Ontario Bar Association - Trusts and Estates Law Section
• Member, Ontario Bar Association - Young Lawyers’ Division
• Student Member, Society of Trusts and Estates Practitioners (STEP) CanadaSee Authors Posts (28) •
December 8, 2017
• 0 Comments

In 2009, Hermine Wekerle, mother of financier and Dragon’s Den star, Michael Wekerle, signed an unconditional power of attorney for property giving one of her three daughters, Caron, authority to be her substitute decision-maker. In 2016, acting under the power of attorney for property, Caron agreed to sell a little…